How to secure Kicker to outboard bracket

R

Roger P.

New member
I just discovered this AM that some jerk(s) stole my 2005 Johnson 6hp 4 stroke kicker off my boat that was parked in front of my house on its trailer.

The bracket raises and lowers and has a thick wooden board on it to which the motor is attached with the thumb screws.

Question: When I get another kicker does anyone have any good suggestions as to how I can secure it to the bracket so that it will be extremely difficult to remove it?
 
That locking device seems adequate, until you realize that they can simply cut off the bracket, or cut it in half, or take a chainsaw to the transom and cut out both motors. Sad! :sad

We discussed an incident/racket once where they simply loaded the whole boat and trailer aboard an 18-wheeler trailer, processed it inside (removing the motors, electronics, and anything else non-traceable), then just dumped the remains in an open field. :smileo

The motors are traceable, but sold overseas where no one cares, and shipped out of the country in cargo containers by cooperating businesses with underworld connections. :amgry

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
Sea Wolf":3eokjz4z said:
That locking device seems adequate, until you realize that they can simply cut off the bracket, or cut it in half...
Click to expand...

I think there are 3 levels to protect against here - the opportunists who see the kicker and just grab it (defeated by a chain or cable), the more directed thieves with bolt cutters (defeated by the device I mentioned), and the professional thieves with a plasma cutters, angle grinders, and so on. You are never going to be able to defeat them, but you can make yourself less attractive to them.

The bar lock is pretty darned secure - there's no place to get a purchase on the hasp of the lock. The real risk is that YOU misplace the key!
 
After my kicker was stolen from the boat in the driveway I heavily invested in locking devices. I think I spent almost a $1000 in locks, chains, wheel locks etc. The worst thing about all the locks is the 20 minutes or so it takes to put them on and take them off.

link to the album here
 
After my kicker was stolen from the boat in the driveway I heavily invested in locking devices. I think I spent almost a $1000 in locks, chains, wheel locks etc. The worst thing about all the locks is the 20 minutes or so it takes to put them on and take them off.

link to the album here
 
centerisland":wphqqp7x said:
The style that slides over the tightening handles seems like the only kind that's not easy to cut through:
http://www.durasafelocks.com/products/marine/marine-ml-OML1.html
Click to expand...

Except that with today's motors the handles are plastic. One good hit with a hammer and they break and the whole thing comes off.

We've started using Krytonite locks, especially this one: https://www.kryptonitelock.com/products ... 2&pid=1169

They guarantee the lock and chain, and back it up by paying your insurance deductable (up to a certain limit) if the chain or lock are broken or cut in the theft.

We tend to run the chain through the handle on the kicker, and through the main bracket on the big motor. They will have to destroy the motors to get the kicker off. They will probably just move onto the next guy.
 
I really appreciate all of your replies. I like the Kryptonite lock suggestion and when I buy a new motor I will make sure that the thumb screw supports are metal rather than plastic.

Again - Thanks for your help!!
 
along these lines I have a idea. after the locks and chains why not think of a camera. digital wireless cameras are becoming affordable. Well affordable enough that if you are setting up the house with cameras you might as well place on on the boat. the video can be feed straight to you home network so if your camera gets stolen with the boat you still have video of the bad guys. the video feds can be accessed from anywhere on the net and today that means your phone or lap top. I'm still researching the different systems and looking into different types of cameras, infer red, night, low lux.....

I think 6 to eight cams would cover my house in and out plus the boat and the shed. wireless is twice the money but saves running wires and allows me to place units in the boat or cars while parked at the house.
 
There was actually video footage of the theives who stole the outboard from one of our customers. The video was give to the police, and it proved absolutely worthless.

With over 100 outboards stolen this year in our county, they have caught a couple of guys who stole a few, but the bulk of them have disappeared, and probably gone overseas.

Video footage would only help if theye catch someone, which is unlikely. And your motor will still be gone.
 
After my kicker was stolen I bolted it to my mini jack plate. On two bolts I used thoe type of nuts like people put on custom wheels. They come with a special socket to remove them. I got mine at a marine store for this very purpose. They come in stainless steel. So far so good.
Chuck
 
Spike -

What is the mini jack plate?

I should probably know but I have been a sailboat type for about 50 years and trailing a motor boat is a brand new experience for this 78 year old.

Roger P.
 
starcrafttom":3blpkm20 said:
I think 6 to eight cams would cover my house in and out plus the boat and the shed. wireless is twice the money but saves running wires and allows me to place units in the boat or cars while parked at the house.
Click to expand...

My neighbor recently sold his business that included doing surveillance installations and from what he told me, the quality of the image with wireless is way worse than with hard-wired. You should come up and talk to Tony sometime. He is still doing the work, but for the new owner.

Warren
 
Roger P.":2ks41e25 said:
Spike -

What is the mini jack plate?

I should probably know but I have been a sailboat type for about 50 years and trailing a motor boat is a brand new experience for this 78 year old.

Roger P.
Click to expand...


One example:
http://www.bobsmachine.com/Products/jackplate_mini-MMJ.cfm

Video footage would only help if theye catch someone...
Click to expand...
True or if they can identify said shit-head from the video. We get TONS of video surveillance; some excellent (expensive systems), some crap (cheap systems) and eveywhere in between. Most go into evidence and that's it. If we catch someone, it becomes valuable for charging purposes, but there are a lot of shit-heads out there.

On two bolts I used thoe type of nuts like people put on custom wheels. They come with a special socket to remove them.
Click to expand...
Great idea! It makes it much more difficult to remove, although you'd be surprised at the ingenuity of some shit-heads.

My advice: do whatever you can to make it more difficult & time consuming. Most shit-heads are lazy, don't want to get seen/caught and are looking for an "easy" way to steal from hard working folks so they dn't have to. Locks, chains, locking nuts, motion lights...whatever. Yep, it's a PIA, costs money etc but...

Sorry for the use of "shit-heads" but trust me...it's appropriate.
 
Roger
My mini jack plate is similar to what Mark shows except mine is a one piece cast unit that looks to be a bit more beefer. It bolts right to the transom. It gives my kicker a bit more lateral room to move left and right, and enough kick back to clear the trim tab on that side
Chuck
 
Chuck --

I understand now -- my boat came equipped with a bracket that has a lever on it to allow the kicker to be raised up for trailering and lowered down when using it. Thanks for the info!

Roger P.
 
The Bitter End blog had a post today about "Putting you boat up for the winter" http://bitterendblog.com/?p=8396 with notes about theft prevention from BoatUS. The two most common theft items are electronics and outboards (outdrives are third, but not relevant to C-Dories):

"1.Electronics: To avoid a theft, it is worth your time and energy to remove electronics and store them at home. If they are permanently installed, record ownership information including model and serial numbers. Photos may also assist with a potential recovery or insurance claim.

2.Outboards: Small outboards should always be removed and stored in a secure location, such as your locked garage or basement. Larger outboards should have a lock installed."

There was a link to a West Marine lock for larger outboards that I hadn't seen before - it goes over the transom nuts:
http://smtp.boatus.net/t?r=5&c=11326&l=1217&ctl=1FE2A2:3633030819DCB7B55BE5BBA74C6F89A8&
 
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